THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 


THE   COLLECTION  OF 
NORTH   CAROLINIANA 


C378 

UK3 
1853N 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00036721342 


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ADDRESS 


DELIVERED     BEFORE     THE 


€m\i  %\itmi\  §nmiu:>    . 


UNIVERSITY  OF  NORTH'CAROLINA, 

June  1>  1853, 

M 
HON.  A.  0.  P.  NICHOLSON, 

OF   TENNESSEE. 


RALEIGH; 
PRINTED  BY  W:  W.  HOLDEN,  "STANDARD"  OFFICE, 

1853i 


11 


Dialectic  Hall,  June  2,  1853. 

Sir:  "    ' 

Having  been  appointed  a  Commitfee,  in  behalf  of  the  Dialectic  Society,  (o 
tender  you  the  thanks  of  that  body,  for  the  veiy  able,  instructive,  and  patriotic 
Address  which  you  delivered  yesterday  before  the  two  Literary  Societies,  and  to 
request  of  you  a  copy  of  tlie  same  for  publication,  we  most  earnestly  hope  you 
will  not  deny  us  a  gratification  so  pleasing  and  a  treasure  so  inestimable. 

Permit  us  to  express  the  very  great  pleasure  we  experienced  during  its  de- 
livery, and  to  add  our  personal  solicitations  to  those  of  the  Society  which  we 
represent. 

Willi  the  highest  regard, 

W.  L.  ALEXANDER, 
R.  B.  JOHNSTON,  \  (hinmittee. 

W.  LAFAYETTE  SCOTT, 
Hon.  A.  0.  P.  Nicholson'. 


Washixgton  City,  Avffust  ],  1853.     • 

Gentlemen : 

Yours  of  June  2d  has  been  received,  requesting  a  copy  of  my  Address  at  the 
late  Commencement  at  Chapel  Hill,  and  insisting  on  my  compliance.  It  is  dif- 
ficult for  me  to  overcome  my  aversion  to  the  publication  of  a  production  which 
was  prepared  under  circumstances  which  rendered  it  impossible  for  me  to  do 
justice  to  the  occasion  for  which  it  was  designed.  But  lest  my  refusal  might  be 
misconstrued,  I  forward  a  copy,  and  submit  the  disposition  of  it  to  your 
discretion. 

•  For  the  kind  reception  which  I  met  from  the  Dialectic  Society,  and  for  the 
compliment  implied  in  their  resolution,  I  ask  you  to  convey  to  the  members, 
whilst  you  accept  for  yourselves,  my  unfeigned  thanks. 

Very  respectfully, 

A.  0.  P.  NICHOLSON. 
Messrs.  Alexander,  ) 

JoHNSTO.v,      >•  Committee. 
Scott,  ) 


y 


ADDRESS 


Gentlemen  of  the  Philanthroinc  and  Dialectic  Societies: 

I  propose  to  redeem  my  promise  to  address  you  on  this  oc- 
casion, by  submitting,  for  your  consideration,  a  few  practical 
remarks  upon  the  influence  and  responsibihties  of  the  Law- 
yer. It  has  occurred  to  me  that  this  subject  might  be  ap- 
propriately and  perhaps  profitably  discussed  before  an  audi- 
ence of  whom  a  liberal  portion  is  doubtless  looking  forward 
to  the  legal  profession  as  the  field  of  their  future  labors,  and 
rewards  and  honors. 

When  I  speak  of  the  lawyer,  I  mean  an  educated  man — 
one  whose  intellectual  faculties  have  been  developed,  disci- 
plined and  enlarged,  preparatory  to  the  labors  of  the  profes- 
sional student,  and  who  has  successfully  encountered  the  ob- 
stacles which  lie  in  his  path  as  a  student,  and  so  far  progress- 
ed in  the  science  of  the  law  as  to  entitle  him  to  a  place  in 
the  Temple  of  Justice,  as  one  of  her  authorised  advocates. 
It  is  the  influence  exerted  by  such  a  man  on  society,  and  the 
consequent  responsibilities  which  attach  to  his  position,  on 
which  I  desire  to  enlist  your  indulgent  attention  during  the 
next  hour. 

My  subject  leads  me,  at  the  threshold,  into  the  considera- 
tion of  the  power  of  mind  over  mind.  I  shall  not  be  guilty 
of  the  presumption  and  folly,  however,  of  undertaking  to 
analyze  the  inherent  properties  and  constituent  elements  of 
mind,  or  to  elucidate  the  mysterious  process  by  which  its 
power  is  made  effective.  That  ''  mind  is  power  "  is  a  tru- 
ism ;  but  a  limit  was  given  to  this  power  by  Him  from  \vhom 
it  emanated,  and  to  attempt  to  pass  this  limit  would  be  worse 
than  folly.  When  God  closed  the  wonderful  work  of  Crea- 
tion, and  "  saw  every  thing  that  ho  had  made,  and,  behold, 


it  was  very  good,"  lie  prescribed  the  laws  by  which  the  vast 
machinery  of  the  universe  was  to  be  governed.  To-enable 
man  to  discover  the  existence  of  these  laws,  to  comprehend 
their  modes  of  operation,  and  to  build  upon  them  systems  of 
science,  he  was  made  "  a  living  soul  " — and  one  of  the  no- 
blest uses  to  which  he  can  dedicate  the  capacity  thus  given 
him,  is  to  the  discovery  and  development  of  the  laws  of  na- 
ture, their  combination  into  distinct  systems  of  science,  there- 
by contributing  to  the  enlargement  of  the  range  of  philoso- 
phy, and  to  the  extension  of  human  knowledge  and  happi- 
ness. Philosophy  acknowledges  no  indebtedness  to  the  crea- 
tive powers  of  those  profound  intellects  which  have,  from 
time  to  time,  penetrated  into  the  deep  mysteries  of  nature, 
brought  to  light  the  eternal  laws  of  her  government,  and  upon 
their  discoveries  based  their  claims  to  immortal  honors.  The 
work  of  creation  was  finished  in  the  beginning,  and  was  com- 
mitted to  man  for  his  investigation  and  comprehension.  This 
task  has- given  full  employment  to  the  most  capacious  minds 
that  have  illumined  the  progress  of  scientific  research,  and 
the  task  is  yet  unfinished.  In  the  material  world  '■'■  the  march 
of  mind  "  has  been  constantly  onward  in  the  enlargement  of 
the  boundaries  of  natural  philosophy  ;  but  comparatively  few 
triumphs  have  been  achieved  in  the  development  of  the  laws 
of  our  moral  government.  It  is  not  to  be  doubted  that  the 
laws  of  mind  and  of  morals  were  originally  prescribed  with 
as  much  certainty  and  distinctness  as  were  those  of  matter.. 
But  whether  they  were  designed  from  the  beginning  to  be 
susceptible  of  only  imperfect  development,  in  consequence  of 
the  disturbing  influences  of  the  affections  and  passions,  or 
whether  the  obscurity  which  hangs  over  our  moral  nature  is 
one  of  the  results  of  man's  first  disobedience,  I  shrill  not  un- 
dertake to  determine.  Our  discoveries  have  gone  far  enough 
to  enable  us  to  know  that  there  are  laws  regulating  the  inter- 
course of  soul  with  soul ;  and  though  we  may  not  be  aUe  to 
build  upon  our  discoveries  in  this  etheriai  field,  systeins  of 
mental  and  moral  philosophy,  distinguished  by  the  demon- 


strative  certainU^  of  the  physical  sciences^  yet  we  may  turn 
the  little  -that  we  do  know  to  profitable  account.  We  know 
as  ceitainly  that  mind  attracts  mind  and  that  virtue  attracts 
virtue,  as  we  do  that  matter  attracts  matter  ;  and  it  is  by  no 
means  improbable  that  these  diiTerent  species  of  attractions 
are  governed  bylaws  strictly  analogous.  As  the  natural  phi- 
losopher will  not  undertake  to  say  what  the  gravity  of  mat- 
ter is,  but  only  what  it  does,  much  less  would  I  be  expected 
to  say  what  the  gravity  of  mind  or  of  morals  is.  I  am  con- 
tent to  know  that  it  exists,  and  upon  this  knowledge,  to  point 
out  the  power  and  influence  exerted  by  the  educated  man 
over  society. 

It  \n\\  be  observed,  that  when  I  speak  of  an  educated  man, 
I  speak  of  one  whose  moral  as  well  as  his  mental  faculties  have 
been  properly  cultivated.  Superior  mind  is  inherently  pow- 
erful and  influential ;  but  when  unregulated  and  unrestrain- 
ed by  a  pure  moral  standard,  it  is  a  power  to  be  dreaded. 

If  the  truth  of  this  remark  needed  confirmation,  it  may  be 
signallly  illustrated  by  reference  to  the  causes  recorded  in  his- 
tory, as  having  contributed  to  the  French  Revolution.  This 
great  event,  out  of  which  grew  wars  that  embroiled  all  the 
nations  of  Europe,  is  attributed,  in  no  small  degree,  to  the 
influence  exerted  upon  the  popular  mind  and  public  morals 
of  P^rance,  by  the  powerful  intellectual  eflferts  of  her  distin- 
guished writers,  amongst  whom  stand  conspicuously  the 
names'  of  Helvetius,  Voltaire,  Rousseau  and  Diderot.  The 
philosophy  of  Helvetius  was  a  refined  system  of  materialism, 
and  was  little  else  than  a  revival  of  pagan  epicurianism. 
But  it- was  congenial  with  the  taste  of  the  times,  and  was 
therefore  adopted  with  avidity.  Voltaire  attempted  no  new 
system,  but  sought  rather  to  render  all  systems  absurd  by  his 
powers  of  sarcasm  and  ridicule.  He  is  distinguished  as  the 
chief  apostle  of  French  infidelity,  and  was  idolized  as  the 
oracle  of  his  age.  "  He  put  the  ball  of  atheism  in  motion, 
and  others  followed  in  a  bolder  track  ;  pushed  out,  not  his 
principles,  for  he  had  none,  but  his  spirit  into  the  extreme  of 


8 

mockery  and  negation. ' '  Rousseau  wrote  elegantly  in  praise 
of  unsophisticated  nature,  and  professed  to  love  the  simple 
and  the  natural,  whilst  he  really  seduced  the  weak  and  sus- 
<eptible  by  his  fascinating  appeals  to  passion,  and  devoted  his 
life  to  gilding  what  is  corrupt,  and  glossing  over  what  is  im- 
])ure.  Diderot  was  not  only  an  open  atheist,  but  a  fierce 
ileniocrat  by  profession,  and  taught  that  truth  was  a  mere  de- 
lusion, and  virtue  but  a  name.  From  1751  to  1765,  he  mada 
liis  Encyclopedia  the  channel  through  which  he  poured  a 
continuous  stream  of  contagious  poison  upon  the  excita- 
ble minds  of  his  countiymen,  corrupting  the  fountains  of 
thought,  effacing  in  the  French  mind  the  image  of  God, 
and  preparing  the  way  for  <' the  reign  of  terror"  which 
succeeded. 
■  The  history  of  the  intellectual  triumphs  of  the  French 
writers,  to  whom  I  have  adverted,  furnishes  an  impressive  il- 
lu!<tration  of  the  power  of  mind,  and  especially  of  its  power 
fo)-  evil,  when  uncontrolled  by  a  sound  moral  regulator.  But 
oiu'  own  Revolutionary  history  furnishes  an  illustration  not 
less  striking.  Thomas  Paine  was  deeply,  and  no  doubt  sin- 
lerely  imbued  with  republican  principles.  Burke  said  of  his 
•■'  Common  Sense,"  that  ''Uhat  celebrated  pamphlet  prepar- 
ed the  minds  of  the  people  for  independence  "—and  Jeffer- 
soii  declared  that  Paine  "  had  labored  with  as  much  effect  as 
any  man  living  for  the  principles  of  the  Revolution."  Un- 
fortunately, however,  for  his  reputation,  he  became  infected 
with  the  prevailing  epidemic  of  French  infidelity.  He  pub- 
lished his  <<  Age  of  Reason,"  and  was  idolized  by  French 
infidels  ;  but  thereby  forfeited  forever  the  high  renown  which 
lie  had  won  by  his  previous  labors  in  the  cause  of  rational 
freedom,  both  in  England  his  native,  and  America  his  adopt- 
ed country.  Had  he  been  content  with  his  fame,  as  a  co- 
^v'orker  with  the  fathers  of  the  Republic,  his  name  would 
have  gone  down  in  company  with  theirs  to  the  latest  posteri- 
iy,  as  one  of  the  boldest  and  ablest  pioneers  in  the  cause  of 
freedom.     But  he  dared  to  turn  the  batteries  of  his  vigorous 


mind  against  the  divinity  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  when 
against  the  throne  and  monarchy  of  God  he  raised  impious 
war, 

"  Him  the  Almighty  power 
Hurled  headlong  flamiug  from  the  otherial  sky, 
With  hideous  ruin  and  combustion  down 
To  bottomless  perdition." 

But  his  "Age  of  Reason"  survived  him,  and  with  it  has 
been  perpetuated  his  power  for  evil.  He  is  still  the  oracle  of 
thousands  of  superficial  thinkers,  who  lack  the  capacity  to 
detect  the  sophistry  of  his  assaults  upon  the  Christian  system. 

The  individual  examples  which  I  have  adduced,  will  suf- 
fice to  illustrate  the  power  of  mind,  and  the  dangerous  char- 
acter of  this  power,  when  directed  against  the  cause  of  virtue 
and  morality,  or  when  unregulated  by  their  chastening 
influence.  I  have  not  selected  these  extreme  cases,  merely 
because  I  see  a  strong  tendency  in  the  times  to  infidelity  ; 
but  my  object  mainly  is,  to  present  extreme  cases  that  I  may 
impress  upon  your  minds  the  important  truth,  that  the  edu- 
cated man  is  necessarily  a  man  of  power  either  for  good  or 
for  evil. 

If  the  educated  man  carries  with  him  into  the  world  so  tre- 
mendous an  engine  of  power,  how  essential  to  his  own  hap- 
piness, and  to  that  of  society,  that  it  should  be  exerted  only 
for  the  accomplishment  of  good!  In  arranging  the  laws  for 
his  moral  government.  Providence  has  furnished  every  man 
with  a  sure  guide  for  the  regulation  of  his  intellectual  powers. 
He  carries  in  his  bosom  a  faithful  sentinel,  who  is  ever  ready 
to  sound  the  alarm  when  danger  approaches.  Unseared, 
imbruised,  and  unperverted  Conscience  may  be  safely  fol- 
lowed, as  the  true  touchstone  of  virtue.  But  if  her  "still 
small  voice"  is  unheeded,  and  her  admonitions  repeatedly 
disregarded,  she  retires  from  her  post  and  ceases  to  keep 
vigils  over  the  approach  of  the  enemy.  She  is  too  sensitive 
to  submit  to  habitual  neglect.  Like  the  mind,  whose  senti- 
nel she  is,  her  powers  may  be  cultivated^  improved  and  en- 


10 

]arg"ed.  It  is  as  mucli  the  business  of  education  to  enlighten 
the  conscience  and  give  it  strength  and  capacity^  as  it  is  to 
shed  hght  upon  tlie  understanding  and  give  vigor  and  power 
to  the  mind.  With  ah  his  prochvity  to  the  indulgence  of  his 
vicious  propensities,  man  has  an  innate  love  of  virtue. 
Crime  has  seldom,  if  ever,  been  able  to  eradicate  and  destroy 
in  the  soul  this  appreciation  of  the  attractiveness  and  excel- 
lence of  pure  morality.  Conscience  may  become  powerless 
in  her  own  household,  but  she  never  ceases  to  sympathize 
with  virtue  in  others.  Virtue  never  exhibits  so  brightly  her 
real  excellence  as  when  she  comes  in  contact  with  vice. 
Crime  cloaks  itself  in  her  pure  habihments,  and  under  this 
disguise  seeks  to  cheat  the  scrutiny  and  the  ends  of  justice. 
Passion  works  under  the  semblance  of  virtue,  and  commits 
its  ravages  under  the  exterior  of  morality.  Avarice  gathers 
her  heaps  of  treasure  by  extortion  and  oppression,  but  she 
operates  under  the  name  of  right  and  justice.  Ambition 
wins  its  wa}'^  to  distinction,  but  its  frauds  and  deceptt^s  are 
gilded  over  with  loud  professions  of  honesty  and  patriotism. 
Such  is  the  tribute  paid  by  vice  to  virtue — its  beauty  is  uni- 
versally conceded — its  excellence  counterfeited — and  its  in- 
fluence appropriated  by  its  worst  enemies. 

If  there  is  so  much  attractiveness  and  power  in  virtue,  that 
passion,  vice  and  crime  find  it  necessary,  for  their  success,  to 
see7n  to  be  its  votaries,  its  constant  and  sedulous  culture  can- 
not be  too  earnestly  impressed  upon  the  attention  of  my  au- 
dience. If  I  nu'ght  presume  to  question  the  perfection  of  the 
prevailing  systems  of  education,  I  would  suggest  that  an  un- 
due proportion  of  attention  is  devoted  to  the  development  of 
the  intellectual,  to  the  neglect  of  the  moral  faculties.  1  know 
that  the  true  place  to  begin  the  cultivation  of  the  moral  sense 
is  at  the  family  altar,  and  that  the  best  teachers  are  the  father 
and  mother  ;  but  I  know,  too,  that  there  is  a  heavy  responsi- 
bility resting  on  parents  for  the  neglect  of  this  branch  of  edu- 
cation. Every  child  has  a  right  to  tlaim  of  its  parents,  not 
merely  that  the  faculties  of  the  mind  shall  be  trained  and  dis- 


.V 


11 

ci])lined,  but  that  he  shall  be  furnished,  by  precept  and  ex- 
ample, with  a  model  of  pure  morality,  which  sliall  make 
truth,  candor,  honesty,  and  virtue  the  objects  of  his  love. 

But  the  neglect  of  this  branch  of  education,  so  far  from 
excusing,  only  increases  the  responsibility  resting  upon  the 
man  of  cultivated  mind.  He  cannot  exert  in  a  proper  man- 
ner the  influence  which  properly  belongs  to  him,  without  an 
elevated  standard  of  morality.  He  has  the  capacity  to  cor- 
rect the  omissions  in  his  early  training  ;  and  by  the  lights  fur- 
nished by  his  own  conscience,  aided  and  supported  by  the 
investigations  of  moral  philosophers,  to  adopt  a  code  of  ethics 
which  will  enable  him  to  exert  all  the  power  that  belongs  to 
a  combination  of  cultivated  mind  and  morals.  The  philoso- 
phy of  education  consists  in  cultivating,  expanding  and  dis- 
ciplining the  intellectual  and  moral  faculties  ;  and  its  great 
object  is  to  prepare  the  man  for  exercising  the  greatest  amount 
of  influence  for  the  advancement  of  the  best  interests  of  so- 
ciety. This  end  can  only  be  attained  by  a  combination  of 
the  powers  which  belong  to  mind  and  morals.  I  would  not 
undervalue  the  able  treatises  on  moral  philosophy  which  are 
used  in  the  schools  ;  but  I  place  the  Books  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament, regarded  simply  as  a  system  of  moral  philosophy,  and 
without  reference  to  their  divine  character,  as  standing  far 
above  them  all.  Virtue  is  nowhere  illustrated  with  so  much 
attractive  beauty  and  simplicity  as  in  the  lives  and  doctrines 
of  Christ  and  his  apostles.  Viewing  them  only  as  moralists, 
without  divinity  or  inspiration,  they  have  laid  down  a  system 
of  ethics,  so  simple,  pure,  comprehensive  and  beautiful  in  its 
principles,  and  have  illustrated  their  excellence  by  so  much 
disinterestedness  and  benevolence,  that  it  commands  our  ad- 
miration and  assent  at  once,  as  the  perfection  of  morality, 
and  points  unerringly  to  the  divinity  of  its  origin.  To  this 
code  I  would  invoke  every  educated  man  to  go  for  that  pure 
and  elevated  standard  of  virtue  which  must  be  the  hand- 
maid of  his  cultivated  mind,  if  he  clears  his  skirts  in  execut- 
ling  the  trust  committed  to  him.     He  cannot  enter  safely  to 


12 

himself  or  to  society  upon  the  active  scenes  of  hfe,  without 
this  shield  to  protect  him  against  the  assaults  and  temptations 
of  passion  which  will  beset  his  path.  Without  the  segis  of 
virtue^  he  is  in  constant  danger  of  becoming  a  victim  to  un- 
hallowed propensities,  and  then,  by  the  exercise  of  the  in- 
herent powers  of  mind,  of  becoming  the  means  of  victimizing 
others.  It  should  be  ever  borne  in  mind,  that  man  is  an 
imitative  being ;  and  as  he  finds  it  easier  to  imitate  the  er- 
rors and  vices  associated  with  great  minds,  than  their  exhi- 
bitions of  intellectual  superiority,  he  readily  adopts  the  for- 
mer, and  deludes  himself,  and  seeks  to  delude  others  with 
the  idea  that  his  very  vi5es  are  evidence  of  his  superiority. 
Vice  loses  its  native  hideousness  when  seen  in  friendly  asso- 
ciation with  genius,  and  when  gilded  by  the  light  reflected 
from  its  biightness. 

If  I  have  been  successful  in  fixing  your  attention  upon  the 
character  of  the  power  wielded  by  the  educated  man,  my 
first  object  has  been  accomplished,  and  I  am  prepared  to  pro- 
ceed to  illustrate  this  power,  as  it  is  exhibited  in  the  influ- 
ence exerted  by  the  lawyer  in  the  different  theatres  in  which 
his  ambition  calls  him  to  play  his  part.  I  might  as  readily 
give  similar  illustrations  in  the  career  of  the  members  of  the 
other  learned  professions,  but  I  will  not  venture  to  make  so 
unreasonable  a  draft  on  your  patience. 

The  spirit  of  progress,  which  is  characteristic  of  our  times, 
is  worldng  out  a  most  desirable  reform  in  the  science  of  law. 
It  was  long  a  standing  reproach  to  the  profession,  that  too 
many  of  its  members  sought  rather  to  become  proficients  in 
the  subtleties  and  technicalities  of  the  law,  than  to  excel  in 
developing  the  fundamental  principles  of  justice  and  equity, 
on  which  the  science  is  based.  The  course  of  justice  was 
embarrassed,  delayed,  and  too  often  defeated,  amidst  inge- 
nious and  artful  efforts  to  excel  in  special  pleading.  This 
system  of  legal  chicanery  provoked  the  merited  sarcasm  and 
rebuke  of  eminent  English  writers,  and  gave  plausibility  to 
the  opinion  expressed  by  Burke,  that  the  practice  of  the  law 


13 

disqualified  the  mind  for  those  liberal  and  enlarged  views 
which  were  essential  to  eminent  statesmanship.  It  gave  rise 
also  to  the  truthful  remark  of  Bolingbroke,  that  the  law^  in 
its  nature,  is  the  noblest  and  most  beneficial  of  the  sciences, 
but  in  its  abuse  and  debasement  the  most  sordid  and  perni- 
cious. But  the  profession  is  no  longer  obnoxious  to  the  re- 
proach of  attaching  undue  importance  to  the  technicalities 
and  subtleties  of  the  science.  Lawyers  now  strive  to  become 
eminent  as  expounders  of  the  law,  according  to  its  reason  and 
spirit,  seeking  to  climb  up  to  the  vantage  ground- — as  Lord 
Bacon  calls  it — of  science,  rather  than  to  become  experts  in 
the  art  of  perverting  and  defeating  the  ends  of  justice.  For 
this  valuable  reform  we  are  indebted  to  the  liberal  and  en- 
larged views  of  the  bench  and  the  bar,  as  much  as  to  the 
wisdom  of  legislation.  The  result  is,  that  the  law  is  now 
what  it  was  always  designed  to  be,  the  science  of  Jus- 
iTiCE.  It  is  the  science  which  defines  and  guaranties  the 
rights  of  life,  liberty,  property  and  reputation.  It  interposes 
its  powerful  arm  between  the  strong  and  the  weak,  the  rich 
and  the  poorj  the  exalted  and  the  humble,  the  learned  andl 
the  ignorant,  and  settles  their  rights  according  to  one  uniform 
standard.  In  its  wide  range  it  embraces  the  rights  of  na- 
tions, and  defines  them  with  accuracy,  whilst  it  points  out 
the  means  of  preserving  and  protecting  them.  Its  grand  ob- 
ject is  even-handed  justice  to  all.  How  deeply  is  it  to  be  re- 
gretted, that  a  science  so  noble  in  its  nature  should  ever  have 
been  degraded  by  any  of  its  votaries,  to  a  mere  trial  of  wits 
in  the  use  of  technicalities  and  forms  !  How  humiliating, 
that  Lord  Coke  himself  should  have  held  out  an  inducement 
to  the  law  student  to  fritter  away  his  genius,  in  becoming  an 
expert  in  the  art  of  special  pleading,  by  the  remark,  that  in 
his  time  the  skillful  special  pleader  never  failed  of  a  lucra- 
tive practice.  The  man  who  follows  the  law,  with  no  high- 
er purpose  than  to  secure  a  lucrative  practice,  may  become 
prominent  as  an  ingenious  and  acute  practitioner j  but  he  will 
never  win  the  reputation  of  a  truly  great  lawyer »     Wherever 


14 

the  passion  for  the  emoluments  of  the  profession  is  predomi- 
nant, "  the  tricks  of  the  trade  "  are  sure  to  be  cuhivated,  as 
the  means  of  success.  He  who  forms  a  just  conception  of 
the  principles  of  the  law,  and  entertains  a  proper  apprecia- 
tion of  the  true  dignity  and  morality  of  his  profession,  will 
look  to  its  emoluments  as  a  secondary  consideration.  Its 
honors,  whether  derived  from  the  triumphant  vindication  of 
the  principles  of  justice  in  the  course  of  his  practice,  or  from 
promotions  to  high  and  responsible  judicial  or  political  sta- 
tions as  the  rewards  of  his  superior  attainments,  will  be  the 
leading  and  controlling  incentives  to  his  ambition. 

How  wide  is  the  field  within  which  the  lawyer  may  legiti- 
mately indulge  his  aspirations  for  fame  !  If  his  ambition 
craves  the  homage  paid  so  freely  to  great  intellectual  attain- 
ments, where  else  can  the  mind  find  such  a  theatre  for  the 
development  of  its  powers,  and  the  exhibition  of  its  triumphs, 
as  in  its  researches  after  truth  and  justice,  buried  deep  as 
they  often  are  under  a  mass- of  error,  obscured  by  the  inge- 
nious devices   of  sophistry,  entangled  within  the  meshes  of 

^Pconflicting  precedents,  and,  not  unfrequently,  made  the  vic- 
tims of  fraud  and  crime  ?  If  he  aspires  to  the  fame  of  an 
orator,  where  else  within  the  range  of  the  human  sciences 
will  he  go  to  find  subjects  appealing  so  powerfully  to  his 
heart  for  its  warmest  sympathies,  and  enlisting  so  ardently  all 
the  generous  impulses  and  energies  of  his  nature,  as  in  the 
practice  of  the  law?  Injured  innocence,  oppressed  weak- 
ness, defrauded  credulity,  calumniated  reputation,  endanger- 
ed libeit)^,  threatened  life — these  constitute  but  a  few  of  the 
themes  Avhich  continually  appeal  to  the  eloquence  of  the 
lawyer.  But  if  power  and  place  possess  attractions  for  his 
ambition,  the  genius  of  justice  invites  his  aspirations  to  the 
bench.  There  he  can  hold  the  scales  of  right,  and  signalize 
his  devotion  to  truth,  by  rewarding  and  protecting  virtue  and 

.  honesty.  The  lawyer  is  on  the  high-way  to  political  dis- 
tinction, and  if  he  covets  the  fame  of  the  statesman,  his 
knowledge  of  the  law  has  so  far  instructed  him  in  the  sci- 


15 

eiice  of  government,  that  the  transition  is  natural  and  easy. 
The  science  of  law  not  only  atrords  ample  scope  for  eve- 
ry variety  of  laudable  ambition,  but  the  extent  of  its  learn- 
ing is  such  as  to  give  constant  employment  to  {he  most  ca- 
pacious and  expansive  minds.  No  intelligent  practitioner  can 
delude  himself  with  the  idea  that  he  has  exhausted  the  foun- 
tains of  legal  knowledge,  and  that  his  hfe  can  be  one  of  leis- 
ure and  repose.  Such  a  delusion  would  prove  fatal  to  all 
his  dreams  of  professional  eminence.  The  lawyer  is  em- 
phatically a  working  man,  but  whilst  he  is  continually  pro- 
gressing and  enjoying  the  consciousness  of  increasing 
knowledge,  he  has  no  hope  of  ever  attaining  to  perfection  in 
the  science.  Let  not  this  remark,  however,  discourage  any 
generous  mind  which  is  inclined  to  the  law.  If  the  labor  of 
tlie  lawyer  is  severe  and  unceasing,  it  is  constantly  reward- 
ed with  new  and  valuable  acquisitions  of  knowledge,  which 
constitute  the  sources  of  the  purest  enjoyment.  As  he  toils, 
the  treasures  of  the  science  are  opened  up  to  his  view  and 
brought  within  his  grasp,  whilst  the  beauty,  symmetry  and 
dignity  of  his  profession  continually  increase  in  attractiveness. 
The  more  he  learns  of  the  eternal  principles  of  riglit  and 
justice,  the  more  he  desires  to  learn.  The  mists  which  at 
first  obscured  his  progress,  and  impressed  his  mind  with  "  the 
uncertainty  of  the  law,"  gradually  clear  away  as  he  ad- 
vances. What  he  once  suspected  Avas  a  mere  chaos  of  con- 
I  fused  and  conflicting  opinions  and  inconsistent  dicta,  he  now 
1  finds  to  he  a  system  of  symmetrical  principles,  all  harmoniz- 
1  ing  with  each  other,  and  each  one  traceable  to  the  great 
1  fountains  of  the  science — right  and  justice.  It  is  not  until 
1  he  begins  clearly  to  comprehend  the  reason  and  spirit  of  le- 
[gal  principles,  that  the  lawyer  labors  with  real  intellectual 
[pleasure.  From  that  time  his  progress  is  onward  and  easy, 
I  from  one  acquisition  to  another,  enjoying  triumph  after  tri- 
lumph,  with  a  mind  elastic  with  delight,  and  eager  for  new 
(researches.  But  at  the  close  of  a  long  life  he  will  never 
Ihave  to  regret  that  there  are  no  more  acquisitions  to  be  made. 


16 

Whatever  direction  his  ambition  takes,  the  lawyer  tnust 
owe  his  success  to  tlie  influence  which  he  exerts  upon  mind. 
He  must  not  onJy  convince  the  judgment  by  the  force  of  lo- 
gic, but  he  must  control  the  will  by  the  powers  of  persuasion. 
There  is  a  constant  antagonism  kept  up  in  our  moral  govern- 
ment between  the  understanding  and  the  will — the  result  of 
the  co.ptivity  of  the  Will  to  the  passions  and  affections.  We 
see  the  right,  and  approve  it — condemn  the  wrong,  and  yet 
pursue  it.  The  lawyer  has  but  half  accomplished  his  work 
when  he  enlightens  and  satisfies  the  understanding — it  is  to 
be  completed,  by  breaking  the  chains  which  bind  the  will  to 
the  car  of  the  passions  ;  he  must  bring  about  harmony  and 
concert  between  the  judgment  and  the  will ;  when  he  has 
effected  this^,  his  triumph  is  complete.  It  is  apparent  that  the 
successful  lawyer  must  be  deeply  learned  in  the  science  of 
human  nature.  When  the  understanding  is  resisted  by  the 
will,  he  must  be  able  to  comprehend  the  character  of  the  in- 
fluence which  stands  in  the  way  of  their  harmonious  action. 
This  resistance  sometimes  originates  in  prejudice  or  partiality; 
at  others^  in  mere  passion ;  and  at  others^  in  moral  obliquity 
or  de{)ravity.  The  remedy  must  be  suited  to  the  disease. 
To  discover  the  disease  and  apply  the  proper  remedy,  is  often 
the  most  difllicultj  delicate  and  responsible  duty  that  devolves 
on  the  lawyer;  A  blunder  may  involve  consequences  fatal 
to  the  ends  of  justice,  may  overwhelm  innocence  with  ruin, 
or  even  put  life  itself  in  jeopardy*  To  be  able  to  exert  a  salu- 
tary influence  on  others,  the  lawyer  must  know  himself. 
He  carries  in  his  own  bosom  a  mirror  in  which  he  may  see 
reflected  all  the  passions)  affections,  sympathies  and  feelings 
which  furnish  motives  and  suggestions  appealing  to  the  will 
against  the  decisions  of  the  understanding;  He  cannot  hope 
for  c.omplete  success  unless  his  own  mental  and  moral  per- 
ceptions are  clear,  distinct  and  accurate;  It  is  not  enough 
to  be  able  to  theorize  fluently  and  plausibly  and  even  cor- 
rectly on  the  beauty  and  excellence  of  virtue ;  but  to  exert 
his  full  influence)  he  must  not  only  speak  from  his  heart, 
v;  '^ 


17 

but  bis  babitual  practice  sboiild  constitute  "  proof  as  strong 
as  Holy  Writ "  tbat  bis  judgment,  bis  affections,  and  bis 
sympatbies  are  enbsted  in  bebalf  of  rigbt  and  justice.  His 
own  brigbt  example  sbould  be  a  living  commentary  on  the 
beauty  and  loveliness  of  virtue.  To  such  a  lawyer  the 
judge  on  the  bench,  the  juryman  in  the  box,  and  the  people 
in  their  primary  assemblies  open  their  hearts  and  listen  with 
confiding  attention.  When  such  an  one  has  gained  the  as- 
sent of  the  understanding,  and  seeks  the  sanction  of  the  will;, 
prejudice,  passion  and  crime  shrink  from  the  contest,  whilst 
conscience  throws  off  her  shackles  and  responds  to  the  gentle 
persuasions  of  his  eloquence,  and  right  and  justice  become 
triumphant. 

It  is  essential  to  the  peace  and  happiness  of  society,  that 
its  members  should  be  impressed  with  an  abiding  confidence 
that  the  law  affords  a  sure  and  certain  protection  to  their 
rights,  against  violation  or  invasion.  It  is  this  sentiment 
which  gives  energy  to  enterprise,  vigor  and  cheerfulness  to 
industry,  and  life  and  elasticity  to  patriotism.  The  legal 
profession  is  mainly  responsible  for  the  maintenance  and  per- 
petuation of*this  sentiment.  It  is  difficult  to  estimate  the  ex- 
tent of  this  influence  exerted  by  the  lawyer  and  judge  on  the 
popular  mind.  It  is  indicated,  however,  in  the  confidence 
with  which  the  citizen  who  considers  himself  aggrieved  ap- 
peals to  the  judicial  tribunals  of  his  country,  and  in  the 
cheerfulness  with  which  he  submits  to  their  adjudications. 
The  sacred  honor  of  every  lawyer  who  comprehends  and  ap- 
preciates the  true  dignity  and  responsibility  of  his  profession, 
is  freely  pledged  for  the  preservation  of  this  sentiment. 

Every  community  is  under  the  government  of  two  distinct 

codes  of  laws — the  one  written  and  the  other  unwritten — the 

1  one  based  on  legislation  and  the  other  resting  on  public  sen- 

itiment.     The  unwritten  laws  prescribe  the  rules  of  social 

:  government  and  regulate  the  standard  of  morality.     Much  of 

1  the  happiness  of  every  society  depends  upon  the  tone  of  moral 

sentiment  which  pervades  it.     All  educated  men  exert  an  in- 

2 


18 

fluence  on  the  popular  mind ;  but  the  lawyer  is  brought  so  im- 
mediately and  so  constantly  into  contact  with  the  masses,  that 
his  influence  is  peculiarly  strong.  He  operates  upon  public 
sentiment,  not  only  by  the  inherent  power  of  superior  over  in- 
ferior mind,  and  by  the  opinions  which  he  utters  in  the  course 
of  his  profession,  but  his  example  carries  with  it  an  unseen  and 
potent  weight.  If  he  is  loose  and  irregular  in  his  morality — if 
he  indulges  in  giving  utterance  to  sentiments  of  infidelity  or  im- 
piety— if  he  makes  virtue  the  object  of  his  ridicule,  and  scoffs 
at  morality  as  pharisaical  hypocrisy — he  diffuses  around  him 
an  influence  which  poisons  public  sentiment  and  gives  coun- 
tenance and  encouragement  to  vice  and  crime.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  his  legal  discussions  are  pervaded  and  characterized 
by  sentiments  of  pure  morality,  and  his  private  intercourse 
and  deportment  reflect  a  similar  devotion  to  truth,  candor 
and  virtue,  he  contributes  powerfully  to  elevate  the  tone  of 
the  popular  mind,  to  purify  the  standard  of  popular  morals, 
and  to  promote  the  quiet,  good  order  and  happiness  of  society. 
These  are  the  legitimate  influences  of  a  combination  of  en- 
lightened mind  and  sound  morality.  How  responsible  the 
trust  which  the  lawyer  undertakes  to  execute  !  He  as- 
sumes to  be  the  protector  of  the  rights  which  give  value  to 
freedom  and  happiness  to  life — to  be  the  guardian  of  Inno- 
cence and  the  advocate  of  Justice  !  If  his  practice  conforms 
to  his  profession,  he  becomes  the  herald  of  Virtue  and  the 
missionary  of  Morality.  His  pathway  in  life  is  illuminated 
by  the  light  which  radiates  from  his  own  bright  intellect, 
whilst  the  emanations  from  his  example  are  as  a  pillar  of  fire 
for  the  guidance  of  the  steps  of  others. 

The  influence  of  the  lawyer  rises  in  dignity  and  grows  in 
weight  and  extent,  when  he  is  promoted  from  the  bar  to  the 
bench.  In  view  of  its  honors,  he  has  then  reached  his  top- 
most round  on  the  ladder  of  professional  elevation.  To  the 
man  who  is  ambitious  of  legal  distinction,  the  bench  is  the 
theatre  in  which  his  professional  fame  may  be  consummated 
and  perpetuated.     The  judge  undertakes  to  illustrate  the  ex- 


19 

cellence  of  the  science  of  law  by  practical  application  of  its 
principles  to  tlie  attainment  of  justice.     One  of  the  main 
pillars  of  government  rests  upon  him,  and  to  sustain  the  bur- 
den, he  must  have  Atlantean  shoulders.     The  rights  of  life, 
liberty,  reputation  and  property  are  committed  to  his  guar- 
dianship, and  his  adjudications  are  fnial.     To  him  is  entrust- 
ed the  exposition  and  preservation  of  the  fundamental  law — 
the   constitution,   to   which    all    legislation   must   conform. 
Whilst  the  law  invests  him  with  powers,  in  many  respects 
supreme,  he  is,  to  a  great  extent,  exempt  from  responsibility 
for  their  abuse.     In  the  exercise  of  his  official  authority,  the 
judge  is  necessarily  entrusted  with  a  larger  discretion.     No 
greater  calamity  could  be  visited  on  any  community  than  to 
have  the  administration  of  the  law  committed  to  a  weak, 
wicked,  tyrannical  or  corrupt  judge.     Considering  the  ex- 
tent of  hi^  powers,  his  exemption  f/om  responsibility,  and  the 
proneness  of  power  to  abuse,  it  is  remarkable  that  history  re- 
cords so  few  instances  of  judicial  dereliction  and  depravity. 
It  abounds  in   illustrious   v_xamples  of  ability,   purity   and 
learning  on  the  benches  of  all  civilized  nations  ;  but  it  is  sel- 
dom that  the  profession  has  been  disgraced  by  the  tyranny 
or  corruption  of  its  presiding  officers.     This  fact,  constituting 
in  itself  the  highest  eulogy  on   the  legal  profession,  may  be 
mainly  attributed  to  the  influence  exerted  by  the  bar  in  the 
promotions  to  die  bench,  and  in  the  restraint  imposed  upon 
judicial  conduct  through   the   power   of  public  sentiment. 
There  was  profound  wisdom  in  tbe  remark  of  one  of  the  fa- 
thers of  the  Republic,  Franklin   I  believe,  that  the  judges 
ought  to  be  elected  by  the  lawyers.     Its  wisdom  is  illustrated 
in  the  well  known  fact  that  wherever  the  appointing  power  is 
lodged,  its  exercise  is  materially  controlled  by  the  legal  pro- 
fession.    But  public  sentiment  furnishes  a  far  more  efficient 
guaranty  against  judicial  derelictiors,  than  strikes  the  view  at 
first  blush.     In  regard  to  the  official  demeanor  of  the  judge, 
public  sentiment  derives  its  first  and  most  effective  impulse 
from  the  bar.    As  a  class,  lawyers  are  sensitively  jealous  as 


20 

to  the  maintenance  of  the  purity  of  the  judicial  ermine,  and 
vigilant  in  detecting  the  first  blot  that  stains  its  integrity. 
Their  OAvn  professional  reputation  is  identified  with  the  oflft- 
cial  bearing  of  the  judge,  and  hence  they  prompdy  claim  the 
right,  and  boldly  exercise  it,  of  criticising  his  errors,  rebuk- 
ing his  cielinquences,  and  denouncing  his  corruptions.  The 
popular  mind  responds  approvingly  to  the  impulse  thus  giv- 
en by  the  bar,  and  public  sentiment  pronounces  a  judgment 
which  judicial  power  cannot  resist. 

Whilst  it  is  tiie  first  and  most  important  duty  of  the  judge 
to  administer  the  law  according  to  right  and  justice  in  all  in- 
dividual controversies,  there  are  incidental  influences  attach- 
ed to  his  station  of  too  much  consequence  to  be  overlooked. 
His  official  acts  are  clothed  with  the  sanction  of  authority, 
and  on  that  accovmt,  as  well  as  from  their  consonance  to  jus- 
tice, they  command  respect  and  approval.  But  the  habitual 
deference  paid  to  the  official  opinions  of  the  judge,  readily 
generates  in  the  popular  mind  the  conviction  that  his  unof- 
ficial sentiments  are  enitled  to  a  similar  respect.  Regarded 
as  the  just  judge  is,  as  a  model  of  intelligence,  uprightness 
and  purity  in  his  official  relations,  it  is  not  unnatural  to  look 
upon  these  attributes  as  constituting  part  and  parcel  of  his 
personal  character.  Indeed,  there  is  something  revolting  in 
the  idea,  that  when  on  the  bench  the  judge  should  make 
equity,  right,  and  justice  his  polar  star ;  and  yet  when  he 
descends  from  that  elevation,  that  he  should  disregard  the 
moral  obligations,  give  loose  reins  to  his  vicious  propensities, 
or  utterance  to  sentiments  at  war  with  virtue.  The  popular 
mind  is  astute  in  detecting  such  inconsistency,  and  is  slow  to 
concede  that  learning  alone  is  sufficient  to  insure  purity  in 
the  administration  of  justice.  Before  the  judge  can  exert 
that  semi-oflicial  influence  on  public  sentiment,  which  legiti- 
mately attaches  to  his  station,  his  private  as  well  as  his  judi- 
cial deportment  must  meet  the  sanction  of  the  popular  judg- 
ment, and  command  its  cheerful  confidence.  The  power  of 
mind  and  morals  combined,  is  nowhere  displayed  more  con-^ 


21 

spicuously  and  beautifully  than  in  the  influence  exerted  by 
such  a  judge  on  public  sentiment. 

What  we  denominate  public  sentiment,  is  the  judgment 
formed  by  the  popular  mind  on  any  given  question  of  morals, 
politics,  or  religion.  In  theory,  each  member  of  the  com- 
numity  investigates,  analyses  and  reasons  on  the  cpiestion  for 
himself ;  but  our  observations  teach  us  that  the  investiga- 
tion and  reasoning  on  which  the  popular  judgment  is  formed, 
is  the  work  of  a  comparatively  few  minds.  The  conclusions 
of  the  few  are  either  ratified  or  rejected  by  the  minds  of  the 
masses^  and  the  prevailing  judgment  becomes  public  senti- 
ment. 

Whatever  may  be  the  truth  of  history  in  other  governments, 
it  is  established  by  every  page  of  our  own,  that  public  sen- 
timent is  our  great  social,  political  and  moral  regulator. 
Statutes  and  constitutions  bow  to  its  dictation  and  yield  to  its 
])ower.  It  is  our  High  Court  of  last  resort ;  and  by  its  adju- 
dications our  customs,  our  laws,  and  our  constitutions  stand 
or  fall.  It  prescribes  the  rules  of  social  government,  and 
modifies  and  reverses  them  at  pleasure.  It  dictates  the 
course  of  legislative  bodies,  gives  force  and  effect  to  their  de- 
liberations and  actions,  or  paralyses  and  nullifies  them  at  will. 
It  overthrows  monarchies  and  drives  tyrants  into  exile,  or 
sweeps  away  republics  and  erects  upon  their  ruins  unmiti- 
gated despotisms.  In  its  decisions  it  has  no  regard  for  uni- 
formity or  consistency  of  action — its  decrees  of  to-day  are  un- 
hesitatingly reversed  by  those  of  to-morrow — but  until  revers- 
ed by  its  own  will  and  judgment,  they  stand  as  the  supreme 
law.  When  goaded  on  by  ignorant  passion,  or  impelled  by 
blind  fanaticism,  its  march  over  existing  institutions  is  mark- 
ed with  the  terrific  violence  of  the  tornado  ;  but  when  influ- 
enced by  enlightened  reason,  and  controlled  by  sound  morali- 
ty, its  course  is  characterized  by  the  gentleness  and  noiseless- 
ness  of  the  evening  zephyr.  This  is  the  chief  instrumen- 
tality through  which  mind  displays  its  power  over  mind  in 
politics  and  morals^  and  the  means  through  which  the  law- 


22 

yer  exerts  his  greatest  influence,  whether  in  ihe  strict  hne  of 
his  profession,  or  in  judicial  positions,  or  as  a  statesman. 

The  most  iUustrious  examples  of  the  power  of  mind  are 
to  be  found  in  the  history  of  the  legal  profession,  in  connec- 
tion with  affairs  of  government.  Ambition  delights  in  the 
law  as  a  favorite  stepping-stone  to  political  distinction.  In 
every  civilized  nation  it  has  furnished  the  ablest  champions 
of  liberty,  and  the  most  eloquent  opponents  of  tyranny  and 
oppression.  The  most  briUiant  triumphs  acliieved  by  Cicero 
were  gained  in  defence  of  the  liberties  of  Rome.  By  his 
disinterested  patriotism  he  won  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and 
by  the  power  of  his  eloquence  he  was  able  for  a  time  to 
maintain  a  successful  contest  with  military  ambition.  It  has 
been  eloquently  said,  by  one  of  our  most  distinguished 
statesmen,  that  '^'  the  Roman  lawyers  or  civilians  of  the  great- 
est celebrity,  and  whose  judicial  opinions  were  held  in  the 
highest  esteem,  even  under  the  despotic  sway  of  the  empire, 
were  not  less  distinguislied  by  the  integrity  of  their  private 
character  than  by  their  talents  and  ability.  Justice  was  so 
much  their  idol ;  so  fixed  and  resolute  was  their  sense  of 
right,  that  neither  the  temptations  of  avarice,  nor  the  splendor 
of  official  station,  nor  the  threatening  brow  of  a  tyrant  could 
corrupt  or  intimidate  them.''  In  modem  times,  England 
has  furnished  a  host  of  eminent  lawyers  and  judges,  not  less 
illustrious  for  their  private  virtues  than  for  their  learning  and 
eloquence.  They  have  signalized  their  own  names,  and 
shed  lustre  upon  their  country 's  fame  by  their  unyielding  op- 
position to  arbitrary  power  and  despotism — by  their  fearless  de- 
nunciations of  the  tyranny  of  their  own  rulers,  and  their  un- 
wavering devotion  to  law,  order  and  right,  amidst  all  the 
storms  of  faction,  the  threatenings  of  tyrannical  power,  and 
the  clamor  of  wicked  agitators  and  demagogues.  The  lib- 
erties of  Great  Britain  may  be  correctly  said  to  rest  upon  the 
English  bar. 

The  fame  of  our  own  countiy  derives  a  large  share  of  its 
splendor  from  the  exalted  virtues,  learning  and  patriotism, 


which  have  chaiaclerized  the  career  of  distinguished  mem- 
bers of  the  legal  profession.  In  the  able  discussions  as  to  the 
right  of  self-government  which  characterized  our  colonial 
history,  the  lawyer  and  the  judge  were  amongst  the  master 
spirits.  They  helped  by  their  genius  and  their  eloquence  to 
kindle  the  fires  of  the  Revolution  ;  and  in  all  its  labors,  sacri- 
fices, dangers  and  honors  they  were  prominent  sharers. 
When  independence  was  secured,  they  were  the  master- 
workmen  in  laying  the  foundation  of  that  noble  superstruct- 
ure of  republicanism,  which,  resting  on  the  solid  basis  of  our 
federal  constitution,  secures  vigor,  strength,  and  I  fondly 
hope,  perpetuity  to  our  federal  Union.  To  the  legal  profes- 
sion is  assigned  the  honor  and  the  responsibility  bf  filling  ex- 
clusively one  of  the  departments  (and  not  the  least  important) 
of  the  government.  All  the  Presidents,  except  two,  who  have 
occupied  the  Executive  Department  have  been  lawyers, 
whilst  a  large  majority  of  the  Cabinet  ofiicers  and  foreign 
ministers,  and  a  large  portion  of  the  Senators  and  Represen- 
tatives who  have  held  seats  in  Congress  have  belonged  to  the 
same  profession.  These  facts  speak  volumes  in  favor  of  the 
legal  profession,  and  furnish  some  idea  of  its  influence  in  our 
government. 

In  attempting  to  call  up  to  your  minds  the  prominent  in- 
fluence exerted  by  the  legal  profession  upon  the  destinies  of 
our  government,  I  am  actuated  by  no  wish  to  indulge  in  un- 
profitable eulogy.  I  would  have  you  to  study  the  Hves  and 
characters  of  the  eminent  lawyers,  jurists  and  statesmen  who 
have  identified  their  names  with  the  glory  of  our  countiy. 
If  it  were  possible  to  strike  from  history  all  traces  of  their  in- 
fluence in  the  affairs  of  government,  our  national  escutcheon 
would  emit  but  a  dim  pale  light,  in  comparison  with  its  pre- 
sent dazzling  brightness.  But  what  is  it  in  the  character  of 
our  distinguished  public  men  that  constitutes  their  crowning 
glory,  and  hallows  their  names  and  their  influence  ?  It  is 
not  simply  that  they  were  men  of  gigantic  intellectual  pow- 
ers, but  it  is,  that  associated  with  these  powers  was  a  deep 


24 

devotion  to  virtue,  which  chastened  their  ambition  and  gave 
to  their  actions  all  the  moral  force  which  belongs  to  genuine 
patriotism.  When  Mr.  Webster  Jiad  exhausted  the  powers 
of  his  great  mind  in  portraying  the  character  of  Jeremiah 
Mason,  he  gave  the  finishing  touch  to  the  picture  when  he 
said  : 

"  But  political  eminence  and  professional  fame  fade  away  and  die 
with  all  things  earthly.  Nothing  of  character  is  really  permanent  but 
virtue  and  personal  worth.  Mr.  Mason's  religious  sentiments  and 
feelings  were  the  crowning  glories  of  his  character." 

Death  achieves  no  victory  over  such  a  character — it  only 
embalms  his  name,  consecrates  his  fame,  and  perpetuates  his 
influence.  Our  national  annals  abound  in  illustrious  mem- 
bers of  the  bar, 

"  Who  shed  great  thoughts 
As  easily  as  an  oak  looseneth  its  golden  leaves, 
In  a  kindly  largess  to  the  soil  it  grew  on — 
Whose  rich  dark  ivy  thoughts,  sunned  over  with  love, 
Flourish  around  the  deathless  stems  of  their  names — 
Whose  names  are  ever  on  the  world's  broad  tongue. 
Like  sound  upon  the  falling  of  a  force — • 
Whose  words,  if  winged,  are  with  angel's  wings — 
Who  play  upon  the  heart  as  upon  a  harp — 
And  make  our  eyes  bright  as  we  speak  of  them." 

Without  undertaking  to  make  a  full  enumeration,  I  would 
most  earnestly  invite  you  to  study  the  lives  and  characters  of 
such  lawyers  as  Mason,  Jay,  Pinckney,  Parsons,  Wirt,  Chaun- 
cey,  Marshall,  Story,  Kent  and  Gaston,  and  their  illustrious 
compeers,  living  and  dead,  in  professional  renown.  Their 
lives  abound  in  instructive  lessons  of  wisdom.  An  earnest 
love  of  virtue  and  a  constant  devotion  to  Christian  morality 
will  be  found  to  pervade  their  characters,  and  to  shed  over 
them  their  richest  charm.  They  won  distinction  by  their  su- 
perior intellectual  achievements,  but  they  won  their  claim  to 
true  greatness  by  their  devotion   to  virtue.     It  is  this  that 


/ 


M 


25 

shines  out  as  the  richest  jewel  in  the  coronet  of  tiieir  fiinie. 
It  is  this  that  gives  immortahty  to  their  influence  as  well  as 
to  their  names. 

If  any  of  my  young  friends,  whose  minds  are  inclined  to 
the  law  as  a  calling,  are  impressed  with  doubts  as  to  the  mo- 
rality of  the  profession,  I  earnestly  pray  all  such  to  study 
carefully  the  career  of  the  distinguished  men  to  whom  I 
have  alluded  ;  and  if  their  minds  are  not  thoroughly  cleared 
of  all  doubt,  in  the  name  of  the  profession  I  implore  them 
never  to  enlist  under  the  legal  banner. 

If  I  have  been  successful  in  impressing  you  with  a  sense 
of  the  power  which  the  la\vyer  wields  in  the  several  theatres 
of  his  ambition,  you  will  readily  perceive  the  consequent 
responsibility  which  attaches  to  the  exercise  of  so  perilous  a 
trust. 

To  meet  that  responsibility  and  to  fulfil  its  obligations,  all 
history,  experience,  observation  and  reason,  combine  to  dem- 
onstrate that  with  the  cultivated,  enlarged  and  disciplined 
mind,  there  must  be  associated  a  pure  and  elevated  code  of 
morality — a  code  based  on  the  truth  of  Christianity,  and  con- 
forming with  its  purity. 

The  history  of  the  world  furnishes  nothing  which  bears 
comparison  with  the  past  career  of  our  government  in  all  the 
elements  of  greatness  and  prosperity.  Its  contemplation  fills 
the  patriotic  bosom  with  emotions  of  national  pride,  whilst  it 
awakens  sentiments  of  profound  gratitude  to  the  ovi&iruling 
Providence  who  has  watched  our  progress  as  a  people  with 
paternal  care.  But  I  am  pained  to  acknowledge  that  there 
are  "  signs  in  the  times  "  which  may  well  excite  fearful  ap- 
prehensions as  to  the  future.  I  have  been  greatly  at  fault  in 
my  obseiTations,  if  there  is  not,  now,  an  alarming  tendency 
in  the  public  mind  to  yield  to  stiange  heresies  and  delusions 
which  strike  at  the  very  foundation  of  true  morality.  Im- 
posture, with  brazen  face,  stalks  boldly  through  the  land,  and 
crowds  of  enthusiastic  votaries  shout  around  its  standard. 
Under  constant  professions  of  reverence  and  veneration  for 


26 

the  Christian  system,  its  very  corner-stone  is  beintj  undermin- 
ed by  tlie  working  of  a  disguised  materiahsm.  The  assauhi! 
of  infidelity  are  not  now  made  openly  and  boldly,  as  in  the 
days  of  French  atiieism,  but  it  may  be  well  doubted  whether 
they  are  less  effective  because  covert  and  indirect.  The 
amazing  developments  in  the  career  of  scientific  research, 
which  are  constantly  startling  the  public  mind,  seem  to  have 
unloosed  it  from  its  moorings,  to  have  destroyed  all  limit  to 
its  credulity,  and  to  have  impressed  it  with  the  conviction 
that  nothing  is  so  absurd  as  not  to  conunand  credence.  This 
entire  brood  of  delusions,  from  Mormonism  to  spiritualism, 
are  converging  in  their  tendency  to  one  common  result — the 
subversion  of  the  authority  of  the  Bible,  and  the  erection  ia 
its  place  of  a  system  of  natural  religion.  Against  the  suc- 
cessful spread  of  such  fatal  heresies,  we  have  no  other  pro- 
tection tiian  in  the  efficiency  of  an  unyielding  adherence  to 
the  standard  of  morals  adopted  by  die  Christian  system.  The 
popular  judgment  and  the  popular  heart  must  be  fastened  to 
this  standard  with  hooks  of  steel ;  and  this  is  the  legitimate 
work  of  the  power  and  influence  of  the  lawj^er,  jurist  and 
statesman,  in  the  formation  and  control  of  public  sentiment. 
They  cannot  witness  the  ditfusion  of  the  spirit  of  insidious 
infidelity  without  feeling  the  heavy  responsibility  which  restd 
upon  them  to  resist  its  further  progress.  1  am  aware  that  it 
would  be  as  idle  to  address  reason  and  arguments  to  the  ma- 
niac, as  to  most  of  the  followers  of  diese  impostors.  But 
their  influence  may  be  circumscribed  and  weakened  by  con- 
centrating upon  their  heresies  and  delusions  the  earnest  and 
effective  condemnation  of  the  wise  and  good,  who  can  be 
made  to  comprehend  and  estimate  their  fatal  tendency.  So 
strong  has  been  the  conviction  on  the  popular  mind  Uiat  the 
maintenance  of  the  Christian  system  is  essential  to  the  con- 
tinued preservation  of  our  liberties,  that  it  need  but  be  shown 
clearly  and  forcibly  that  this  great  citadel  of  our  freedom  is 
assailed,  to  awaken  a  spirit  of  patriotic  enthusiasm  w^hich  will 
communicate  to  public  sentiment  irresistible  efficacy.     The 


27 

lawyer,  in  each  of  the  theatres  of  his  power  and  his  glory, 
as  lawyer,  jurist  and  statesman,  must  become  the  champion 
of  true  religion — of  pure  morality — leased  on  the  rock  of 
Christianity.  His  eloquent  voice,  sustained  by  his  equally 
eloquent  example,  nuist  arouse  tlie  popular  mind  from  its 
torpor,  enlist  all  its  energies  on  the  side  of  Christian  patriot- 
ism, and  thus  erect  around  our  happy  institutions  a  wall  of 
defence  which  will  defy  the  assaults  of  fanaticism  and  infi- 
delity in  all  their  phases. 

I  am  aware  that  the  unparalleled  success  which  has  mark- 
ed our  career  in  self-government,  has  generated  a  feeling  of 
confidence  in  the  durability  of  our  institutions  which  inclines 
us  to  listen  with  some  degree  of  indifference  to  the  cry  of 
danger.  Our  experiment  has  proved  eminently  successful, 
but  too  much  confidence  may  prove  disastrous.  It  should 
never  be  forgotten  that  "  eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of  free- 
dom." The  proud  ship  may  ride  triumphantly  through 
storm  after  storm,  her  solid  bulwarks  defying  the  utmost  fu- 
ry of  the  angry  billows  ;  and  yet  when  her  happy  crew  are 
gloiying  in  their  safety  and  in  the  strength  of  their  gallant 
vessel,  they  may  be  carried  to  the  bottom  by  the  silent  but 
persevering  work  of  the  smallest  insect.  The  confidence  of 
our  people  in  tlie  strength  and  durability  of  oiu'  government 
was  never  greater  than  at  this  moment.  The  noble  vessel  of 
state  has  but  recently  encountered  successfully  the  most  ter- 
rific storm  that  has  yet  crossed  her  path,  and  we  are  indulg- 
ing in  the  happy  repose  generated  by  a  sense  of  danger  pass- 
ed. The  character  and  extent  of  that  danger  can  never  be 
forgotten.  It  exhibited  with  alarmmg  clearness  the  points  of 
weakness  in  our  government.  The  spectacle  exhibited  dur- 
ing the  late  perilous  crisis  paled  the  cheeks  of  our  bravest  pa- 
triots, and  caused  the  deep  gloom  of  despair  to  hover  for  a 
time  over  the  national  heart.  Hope  herself,  with  a  deadly 
heart-sickness,  seemed  almost  ready  to  bid  farewell  to  free- 
dom as  she  gazed  upon  the  sectional  strife,  the  fraternal  dis- 
cord, the  mad  fanaticism,  and  the  infuriated  crimination  and 


28 

recrimination  which  threatened  us  with  the  horrors  of  dis- 
union. 

But  what  a  change  came  over  the  patriot's  heart  when  the 
violence  of  the  tempest  abated,  when  the  thick  gloom  clear- 
ed away,  and  the  noble  old  ship  of  state  was  seen  careering 
onward  with  her  ancient  firmness  and  steadiness,  with  her 
rigging  all  sound,  and  our  national  banner,  in  its  original 
brightness,  floating  gracefully  in  the  breeze,  with  our  glori- 
ous motto  uneffaced,  and  every  star  and  stripe  shining  in  its 
place  !  A  thrill  of  joy  ran  like  electricity  through  the  land. 
It  was  then  that  the  national  heart,  in  the  fullness  of  its  grati- 
tude and  the  ecstacy  of  its  delight  exclaimed — God  be  prais- 
ed !  our  national  Union  is  safe  ! 

But  is  the  Union  safe?  Is  the  danger  all  over?  Is  there 
nothing  delusive  in  the  repose  and  happiness  which  pervade 
the  land?  Are  we  sure  that  the  mighty  billows  \vhich  dash- 
ed with  so  much  fi-erce  fury  against  the  strong  oaken  sides  of 
the  noble  vessel,  have  made  no  impression  ?  Are  we  entirely 
certain  that  the  little  insects  are  not  busily  and  successfully 
undemiining  her  strength?  Would  we  feel  no  misgivings  to 
see  her  subjected  to  another  such  trial  ?  Without  touching 
here  the  forbidden  tree  of  mere  politics,  may  I  not  remind 
you  that  above  the  loudest  thunder-claps  that  startled  us 
amidst  the  storm,  we  heard  the  voices  of  Clay,  of  Webster 
and  of  Cass,  pleading  as  men  seldom  ever  plead  before — for 
harmony — for  compromise — for  the  Union.  But  we  shall 
hear  the  voices  of  Clay  and  Webster  no  more,  except  as  they 
speak  from  their  tombs.  They  were  spared  only  long  enough 
to  make  their  last  their  brightest  days.  Cass  lingers  behind 
them  at  three  score  and  ten,  but  he  too  must  soon  follow  his 
illustrious  compeers  in  renown.  When  the  danger  comes 
again,  who  have  we  like  this  illustrious  trio,  to  '^ride  upon 
the  whirlwind  and  direct  the  storm?"  We  cannot  specify  the 
individual  names  that  will  figure  when  the  trial  comes  on  ; 
but  we  can  confidendy  predict  that  in  its  dangers,  its  labors, 
its  disasters  or  its  glories,  the  lawyer  will  have  his  full  share. 


29 

Public  sentiment  has  displayed  its  power  in  rebuking  the 
unholy  coalition  between  fanaticism  and  political  ambition, 
but  the  elements  of  sectional  discord  and  jealousy  still  exist. 
How  long  it  will  be  before  the  fires  of  agitation  shall  be  again 
kindled  into  a  flame,  will  depend  upon  the  success  of  fanati- 
cism in  forming  new  combinations.  Whilst  the  arch-enemy 
of  our  institutions  is  availing  himself  of  the  prevailing  repose 
in  the  public  mind  to  gain  additional  strength,  and  beat  up 
for  new  recruits  for  its  next  attack,  it  becomes  the  friends  of 
the  Union  to  be  vigilant  and  active  in  preparing  for  the  en- 
counter. It  is  much  to  be  feared  that  the  standard  of  politi- 
cal morality,  even  amongst  many  eminent  statesmen,  is  too 
low.  If  men  in  official  stations  can  barter  their  influence  for 
pecuniary  considerations  with  impunity,  it  is  a  strong  indica- 
tion that  there  is  a  tendency  to  political  depravity  in  the  times. 
The  same  tendency  may  be  inferred  from  the  wide  spread 
mania  for  office,  for  the  sake  of  its  emoluments,  which  min- 
gles itself  with  our  political  contests.  It  may  be  doubted 
whether  the  spirit  of  frequent  constitutional  reform  which 
pervades  some  of  the  States,  does  not  indicate  a  state  of  rest- 
lessness in  the  pidalic  mind  which  is  inconsistent  with  that 
respect  for  the  fundamental  law  which  is  essential  to  the  per- 
manency of  our  institutions.  It  is  neither  to  be  expected  nor 
desired,  that  in  this  age  of  mental  illumination  and  progress 
the  science  of  government  should  remain  stationary  j  but  it  is 
essential  that  its  onward  march  should  be  characterized  by  a 
spirit  of  moderation  and  conservatism — that  stability  as  well 
as  progress  should  become  our  watchwords. 

But  without  dwelling  upon  these  evidences  of  social  and 
political  demoralization,  I  cannot  refrain  from  alluding  to 
another  feature  in  the  times,  which  strikes  my  mind  as  por- 
tentous of  evil.  I  refer  to  the  disposition  manifested  by  some 
prominent  men  in  different  sections  of  the  country,  to  enter 
deliberately  into  a  calculation  of  the  value  of  the  Union, 
with  an  eye  to  its  ultimate  dissolution.  Until  recendy,  the 
announcement  of  such  a  proposition  as  susceptible  of  debate, 


30 

would  have  startled  the  public  mind.  The  fact  that  it  does 
not  now  excite  astonishment  or  provoke  indignation,  consti- 
tutes it  a  fearful  omen.  Heretofore  the  chief  business  of 
f^tatesmen  has  been  to  de\ase  the  means  for  the  greatest 
amount  of  prosperity  to  be  derived  from  systems  and  meas- 
ures of  internal  policy  ;  but  their  great  business  now  is,  to 
preseiTe  our  institutions  from  decay  or  overthrow,  to  reconcile 
or  harmonize  the  dissensions  and  conflicting  interests  of  the 
different  sections,  and  to  restore  and  preserve  fraternal  rela- 
tions amongst  the  members  of  the  confederacy.  The  wise 
counsel  of  the  father  of  his  country  on  these  questions 
seems  to  me  to  be  an  appropriate  conclusion  to  my  remarks  : 

"  The  unity  of  government  wliich  constitutes  you  one  people,  is  al- 
,so  now  dear  to  you.  It  is  justly  so ;  for  it  is  a  main  pillar  in  the  edi- 
fice of  your  real  independence ;  the  support  of  your  tranquility  at 
home ;  your  peace  abroad ;  of  your  safety ;  of  your  prosperity  ;  of 
that  very  liberty  which  j-ou  so  highly  prize.  But,  as  it  is  easy  to  fore- 
sec,  that  from  different  causes,  and  from  different  quarters,  much  pains 
will  be  taken,  many  artifices  employed,  to  weaken  in  your  minds  the 
conviction  of  this  truth ;  as  this  is  the  point  in  your  political  fortress 
against  which  the  batteries  of  internal  and  external  enemies  will  be 
most  constantly  and  actively  (though  often  covertly  and  insidiously) 
directed ;  it  is  of  infinite  moment,  that  you  should  proper!}^  estimate 
the  immense  value  of  your  national  Union  to  j'our  collective  and  indi- 
vidual happiness ;  that  you  should  cherish  a  cordial,  habitual  and 
immovable  attachment  to  it;  accustoming  j^ourselves  to  think  and 
speak  of  it  as  the  palladium  of  j^our  political  safety  and  prosperity ; 
watching  for  its  preservation  with  jealous  anxiety ;  discountenancing 
whatever  may  suggest  even  a  suspicion  that  it  can,  in  any  event,  be 
abandoned;  and  indignantly  frowning  upon  the  first  dawning  of  eve- 
ry attempt  to  alienate  any  portion  of  our  country  from  the  rest,  or  to 
enfeeble  the  sacred  ties  v.'hich  now  link  together  the  various  parts." 

My  young  friends,  I  have  now  redeemed  my  promise— 
a  promise  which  I  made  with  much  hesitancy,  and  which  I 
fear  I  have  fulfilled  but  little  to  your  satisfaction.  Your  in- 
vitation was  received  with  feelings  of  gratification  and  plea- 
sure which  none  can  fully  realize  but  those  who  have  been 


31 

separated  for  more  tlian  a  quarter  of  a  century  from  the  hap- 
py scenes  and  companions  of  their  youth,  and  who  have 
been  unexpectedly  caUed  to  revisit  those  scenes  and  reunite 
with  a  portion  of  those  companions.  Such  was  my  situa- 
tion. But  I  hesitated  to  accept  because  I  was  sincerely  dis- 
trustful of  my  ability  to  fill  a  station^  even  with  respectability, 
which  had  been  filled  by  others  with  so  nmch  distinction. 
My  judgment,  however,  surrendered  to  my  feelings,  and  I 
determined  to  throw  myself  upon  your  generous  indulgence. 
And  now,  if  in  the  feeble  plea  in  behalf  of  virtue  which  I 
have  made,  I  have  succeeded  in  exciting  a  purpose  in  the 
bosom  of  any  one  of  you  to  dedicate  his  life,  with  increased 
ardor,  to  her  noble  cause,  I  have  been  fully  compensated, 
and  the  pleasure  of  my  visit — arising  from  the  renewal  of  old 
associations  and  friendships  and  the  revival  of  happy  recollec- 
tions— is  all  clear  gain.  For  the  honor  )^ou  have  conferred 
on  me,  I  tender  you  my  profoundest  gratitude  ;  and  on  your 
behalf,  I  present  to  an  overruling  Providence  my  sincere 
prayer  that  your  course  through  life  may  be  marked  by  the 
richest  blessings  of  Heaven. 


